Icewind's Ramblings

It is bittersweet that I am not in Alaska as it was so much a part of my life these last twenty years being away from Atlanta and the South.  I think that both places and the people there can take things for granted as we sometimes forget just how beautiful it can be or accept without thinking all that is going on around us.  It is those little things we see each day on the way to work or driving somewhere that is in front of us but we may be too busy to notice with all the things going on in our lives.  Making a conscious effort to pay attention or stop for a few seconds to notice the sunset, the beautiful flowers all over town or in neighbor’s yards are all things that make our day better without us realizing it or costing us anything other than time.  Slow down and enjoy things wherever you are. Many people in Key West or living on the beach stop most days to watch the sun slowly drop below the water on the horizon getting a feeling of calm satisfaction on ta...

I wanted to go back and write more on the fall night in north Georgia seeing the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band once again.  It uplifted my spirit at the time and made the upcoming week of losing my Aunt Doris thirteen days after losing my uncle a little easier as I remembered when the music can start to heal all things. "Circlin' Back - the Nitty Gritty Dirt Band" tour came to the Georgia Mountain Fall Festival Celebrating 50 Years of playing great music together on Saturday night, October 1, 2016. The weather was perfect with a slight crispness in the air, a slight smell of wood smoke drifting by either from the nearby local area houses or the concession but either way it gave a welcoming down home feel to the evening.  Playing to a sold out crowd the attendees ranged from grandchildren to middle age and to the bulk of the crowd, the over 50-60 crowd.   I would guess that most were like me who have followed the group since the late 60’s attending their concerts wheneve...

As many of you know I have not had a chance to write much these last few weeks with the multiple deaths in our family and all the things done dealing with hospitals, nursing homes, hospice care, and making arrangements for funerals.  A hidden surprise that came from this was several members of my family decided to go anyway to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens just hours after my aunt’s funeral.  We were all excited expecting to see a beautiful blown glass exhibit throughout the gardens.  It did not disappoint anyone and we were all blown away by the mixture of different glass pieces set in the fauna around the gardens. Dale Chihuly has been creating unique and amazing pieces of glass art work for over forty years.  He is an American artist whose studio and glassworks facility are located in Seattle Washington.  He has mastered the alluring, translucent and transparent qualities of ice, water, glass, and neon to create works of art that transform the viewer exp...

Stand a Little Rain “If we're ever gonna see a rainbow We have to stand a little rain.” That seems to be what my family is going through right now. We seem to be going through a period of thunderstorms, lightening and rain as we look forward to the rainbow and sunny times once again. With all that has happened over this year it has been both trying and an opportunity to remind oneself that we are not in control of our lives that things happen for a reason (sometimes we don’t totally understand at the time) and we just have to continue taking one step at a time moving forward in our life. It’s been tough for everyone and the latest with my uncle Boe’s sudden passing and my aunt Doris still in rehab care for a broken hip and leg with full Alzheimer’s so the road ahead will be a long and winding one for everyone.  We are always thankful for our southern roots, a heritage which makes strong but pliable caring people. The service last Friday was simple, great music, so...

Before I left Portland Oregon to come to Atlanta when my brother in law, Doug Coker passed away unexpectedly I knew I would not arrive in time for his memorial service so I wrote a eulogy that my brother Ron spoke during the service.  I wanted to post it now so I would have a record of it during my travels. Thanks to all of you who have posted or emailed your thoughts and prayers for our family as it is much appreciated by everyone. Time is too slow for those who wait, Too swift for those who fear, Too long for those who grieve, Too short for those who rejoice, But for those who love, time is eternity. Hours fly, flowers die, New days, new ways pass by, Love stays. (Henry Van Dyke) Though my heart is filled with much sadness during this time, my thoughts will not be one of despair, nor of loss, and mourning, but it is one of hope, love, and celebration.  I had the good fortune of knowing Doug since early childhood, living in the same neighborhood, spending time...

Grief can have far reaching effects “Grief is like a long valley, a winding valley where any bend may reveal a totally new landscape.” - C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed Over the last several months my family has been going through some major changes to our lives due to an unexpected death in the family. It has brought with it many different feelings and thoughts about the short term future and long-time changes to things. Trying to be an observer has been hard in that I lost a lifelong best friend and seeing the interactions of my family has been hard on me and everyone else.  Grief can take many forms in all of us and there are some shared emotions but I have found that it is a very different and unique experience for each of us depending on the relationship within our family structure. Losing a husband, father, grandfather, brother-in-law, best friend, and so many other combinations is a complicated and sometimes trying thing for us to go through.  We each...

My analogy of life through a backpacker eyes. Imagine yourself as a traveler walking through life with a backpack on your back. Your life is the journey, the road ahead is your future and the bag on your back is your past.  As you walk through your journey of life you pick up rocks of all shapes and sizes along the way which  symbolize  memories and experiences from your past. Now imagine you are walking forward on your journey with the bag on your back: it will be fine to have a couple of the rocks in the backpack, but if you carry too many heavy rocks around with you, eventually the backpack will get too heavy and you will no longer be able to continue moving forward. You become tired and overwhelmed with all the weight you carry around with you and can’t seem to want to move on with your life. After a bit of time you see that to move forward once again you have to take the backpack off, look at those memories from the past, acknowledge the past for wha...

I've had several people recently ask me how long I have been blogging and how did it all start.  I searched back through the archives and found my second post (first real post) where it all started.  My inquisitive side (plus my office at the time was in the laundry room) so my imagination took over and many years later has taken me on many travels, thoughts about many subjects and just weird observations along the way.  If you have some free time go back through the archives and enjoy some good reads along the way. (Most are a great length for bathroom reading, lol). Did you ever wonder? A couple of nights ago after a really long week I was sitting in my washing machine trying to figure out how the  Downy Ball  works. The water was really cold until I hit the button for Hot/Cold water and changed the setting to “extra large” load. I like using the  Downy  “Enhancer” Ball for that clean fresh smell it gives all of my clothes and sheets. I es...

What is lonely? I have been asked by several people since I started my travels if I am lonely traveling alone over the many miles I have gone so far?  I think the thing about the question is that it really leaves a lot to be defined. Lonely compared to what?  Compared to before I started travelling?  Compared to you?  Compared to the locals and people I meet along the way or where I am?  Compared to a “typical” single guy my age?  Compared to a married guy with children and an active social life? For one thing there are many aspects of loneliness.  You can be lonely even if surrounded by people who know you because you feel they don’t “get” you. You can be lonely in a long-term relationship because you realize it isn’t going great and possibly over.  You can be lonely because you are stuck in a routine (at home or work) and not having deep conversations with people.  There are so many ways you may feel lonely ...

Life Observation # 164 . . .   Life is a gift that you must unwrap.  It's up to you to determine if what's inside will lead you to happiness or dismay.  You have the power to make that decision for yourself . Ice

The Georgia Guidestones Several years before leaving Atlanta for Alaska in 1995 I discovered a unique and interesting site in a field near Elberton Georgia.  Rolling hills of farmland are the normal views one usually sees while driving in the area along Georgia Highway 77 (Hartwell Highway).  On one of the windswept hilltops just outside Elberton stands an unexpected granite monument.  The monument is alternately referred to as The Georgia Guidestones, or the American Stonehenge.  I still cannot believe in the time I have lived in Alaska over the last twenty years the Guidestones are still relatively unknown to people I talk to.  It is not the typical tourist location but probably is in the same theme as the world’s largest ball to twine (Cawker City KS, Hwy 24 west of Topeka Kansas) or largest frying pan (Rose Hill N Carolina).  I have seen the ball of twine but not the frying pan which is still on my bucket list. Elberton isn't called the '...

I was taking a look back to when I first started blogging in November 2005 to find my first post which was about what it would be like to be the Downey ball in the washing machine but for some reason my archives start with December 2005 missing those first few posts from around the Thanksgiving holidays. I saw one from December 18, 2005 which reminded me of this story told on the TV series The West Wing.  Many of us can relate so I thought I would re-post part of the original post. This is for today. I enjoy watching the acting and conflicts on the TV series  “ The West Wing ”  and one of the actors,  John Spencer  died Friday. He will be missed both in the show and by those who knew him in real life.  R.I.P. John Spencer  “ The West Wing ”. He told a story about Friendship on one of the episodes in 2000 that always stayed with me and I would like to share it with you: A man falls down a hole and can't get out. A doctor wa...